Chapter 965: Clue

Mi Li sighed softly, "I know this item is incredibly rare and probably impossible to find. I'll seclude myself for a while to thoroughly research if there are other ways to heal my soul's injuries."

Hearing her dejected tone, Zu'an's heart swelled with emotion, and he blurted out, "Don't worry, no matter how difficult, I'll do my best to find it for you!"

Mi Li had helped him so much; though nominally master and disciple, they were truly like siblings. How could he simply stand by and do nothing?

"Then I truly thank you," Mi Li said with a smile. Her tone clearly indicated she didn't believe Zu'an could find the medicine, as such an item was too rare—even an emperor might not be able to locate it.

Sensing her nonchalance, Zu'an said nothing, simply committing the name "Purple Frost Divine Milk" firmly to memory.

"By the way, you seemed to be struggling with breakthrough earlier, didn't you?" Mi Li's voice sounded again.

"That's right, I seem to have been stuck at this level for a long time…" Zu'an explained his cultivation problems to her.

Mi Li replied, "Ordinary cultivators accumulate vital energy gradually through years of practice. With the aid of formations and primeval stones, the effect would be much better. In your case, you could use the Taotie Devouring Heaven Art to rapidly absorb others' cultivation for quick advancement. However, I don't recommend you do that. It would lead to an unstable foundation. It's better to cultivate and refine your internal cultivation bit by bit."

Zu'an wondered, "The Taotie Devouring Heaven Art is a cultivation method on par with the Phoenix Nirvana Scripture. In theory, it shouldn't have such a significant hidden danger, should it?"

This isn't like the Star Sucking Great Art; how could it have such a major flaw?

Mi Li replied, "The universe has yin and yang; everything has its pros and cons. The Taotie Devouring Heaven Art is powerful because it allows for rapid progress, but this speed also leads to an unstable foundation. The reason successive Shang kings had no problems cultivating it was because their advancement was gradual, and they had enough time to refine and absorb the cultivation of others."

"But you possess three wondrous techniques and have encountered repeated fortunate opportunities; your cultivation speed has increased far too rapidly. At such a young age, you are already close to the peak of the ninth rank—few, if any, throughout history can compare to you. As for your emperor, if he hadn't thought you inherited Old Man Mi's cultivation, thereby cutting off your future advancement, he probably would have become wary and killed you long ago."

Zu'an's heart trembled. Currently, only Mi Li and the emperor knew his true cultivation level. Others had their own conjectures about his cultivation, but because he had "Bright Mirror Not a Stand" and the sachet provided by Concubine Bai for concealment, their guesses were far from the truth.

"So what should I do next? I can't just go get beaten up, can I? With my current cultivation, even if I got beaten up every day, my improvement would probably be very limited."

Mi Li replied, "Don't keep thinking that the Phoenix Nirvana Scripture relies on getting beaten to raise cultivation. That was just Old Man Mi's shallow understanding leading him astray. Ultimately, the Phoenix Nirvana Scripture improves by cultivators constantly breaking through their limits in battle, gradually enhancing themselves. The more dangerous the battle, the more severe the injuries, and the stronger they become after recovery." Zu'an retorted, "Isn't that still relying on getting beaten…?"

Mi Li was speechless.

She simply ignored his words and continued, "Your trip to Cloud-Mid County will likely involve danger; that will be your opportunity for accumulation and improvement. However, breaking through to the Grandmaster realm is not that easy. It often requires the aid of rare treasures, or the tempering of the body by immense natural vital energy found in blessed lands and grotto-heavens. Such things are hard to come by. When the time is right, I'll explain it to you in detail."

"So, I just need to refine my internal cultivation and solidify my foundation now?" Zu'an frowned slightly. In truth, he hadn't stopped refining during this time, but progress was minimal, and further practice probably wouldn't yield significant results.

"I'm telling you this because I don't want you to take shortcuts with the Taotie Devouring Heaven Art just for a breakthrough," Mi Li replied. "Given your current situation, refining your soul is more suitable. Using this opportunity to simultaneously refine your internal vital energy should yield better results."

Zu'an was startled. "Isn't refining the soul something only Grandmasters can do? Wouldn't it be a bit too early for me?"

"With your current cultivation, you won't be at too much of a disadvantage against lower-level Grandmasters," Mi Li explained. "What you lack are merely soul-related techniques. Your unique circumstances are different from others; for other cultivators, refining the soul before becoming a Grandmaster would easily lead to their physical body collapsing from lack of strength, but you don't have this problem."

Zu'an was overjoyed. "Then, how can I refine my soul?"

"Meditate, relax your whole body, and feel the energy of heaven and earth," Mi Li explained. "First, visualize your mental power materializing. Don't use your eyes or your vital energy; instead, use your mental power to perceive everything around you and try to touch them. One day, when you can slightly move small objects with your mental power, you'll have entered the initial stage. I'll first impart a mantra to you, which can help you train your mental power. After you reach the initial stage, I'll teach you the specific method for refining your soul."

"Thank you, sis… Master!" Zu'an was exceptionally delighted. If mental power could materialize, wouldn't he be able to touch many things from a distance in the future?

As if guessing his thoughts, Mi Li's warning voice came. "By the way, I need to remind you of something: at first, your mental power will be very fragile. Never try to touch living creatures. Otherwise, if the other party has any strong reaction, at best, your mental power will be severely damaged; at worst, you'll directly become an idiot."

Zu'an was startled. "That terrifying?"

"Of course, when cultivating mental power, never be too hasty; otherwise, your soul could easily be annihilated." Mi Li's voice gradually weakened again.

Zu'an thought that Mi Li, being in a soul state and having suffered such severe injuries, must have expended a lot of energy by talking so much to him. He quickly said, "By the way, I just remembered I cultivated the latter half of the Primordial Chaos Scripture; it can heal others' injuries. I wonder if it can repair your damaged soul?"

"You want to take advantage of me?" Mi Li's voice suddenly rose.

Zu'an was stunned, then reacted and immediately explained, "That's not what I meant. My Primordial Chaos Energy can now enter others' bodies to help heal injuries."

"No need, it's useless for me. I am currently a soul body." Mi Li also realized her reaction had been somewhat excessive. She lightly coughed and said, "Cultivate well on your own. I need to fall into slumber again."

After she finished speaking, the room fell silent once more.

Zu'an called out a few times, but there was no longer any response from Mi Li. For a moment, he felt an emptiness in his heart.

"I must help her find the Purple Frost Divine Milk!" His gaze grew firmer. Soon, he took out the Embroidered Uniform Guard's attire from the Glazed Pearl. After quickly changing, he slipped out of the room under the cover of night.

Silver Badge Emissary Xiao Jianren was in his room, reading by oil lamp, when he suddenly felt a sense of alarm. He grabbed the knife beside him and looked behind him. "Who's there?!"

He saw a figure sitting in the shadows not far away. Xiao Jianren squinted and quickly recognized the figure's attire. He quickly put away his knife. "Greetings, Lord Eleven!"

Zu'an hummed in acknowledgment. "There's something I need you to do for me."

Given the strict hierarchical relationship among Embroidered Uniform Guards, there was no need for him to beat around the bush.

"Please command, My Lord," Xiao Jianren replied, pleased. He had previously been uneasy about the orders to simply follow Sang Hong with his men. Now that he knew there was a mission, a heavy weight was lifted from his heart.

"Do you know about Purple Frost Divine Milk?" Zu'an asked, looking at him somewhat nervously. The other party was like a living library, and few could rival his familiarity with the intelligence in the Embroidered Tower. If even he didn't know, then it would truly be troublesome.

Xiao Jianren was startled. "Could it be that some lord's soul is damaged?"

He asked somewhat indirectly; he actually wanted to ask if Zu'an was injured, but he was afraid of being presumptuous.

Zu'an couldn't help but be pleased. It seemed the name "Purple Frost Divine Milk" hadn't changed in this world, which would make it much easier to find. "Never mind that. Do you know where Purple Frost Divine Milk can be found?"

Xiao Jianren shook his head. "This is a spiritual item of heaven and earth, rarely seen in the world. If not for a region having offered Purple Frost Divine Milk as tribute to the Emperor years ago, I might not have known about it either."

"The Emperor has it?" Zu'an frowned. That could be troublesome. But even if it was difficult, there was a target now, which was better than being a headless fly.

Xiao Jianren's expression changed, thinking, "From the sound of your words, it seems like you want to snatch it from the Emperor." He quickly said, "Back then, the Emperor's soul was severely wounded in a battle with the Demon Emperor, and he recovered by relying on Purple Frost Divine Milk."

"So the Emperor doesn't have it anymore?" Zu'an raised an eyebrow. He now really wanted to hang up this squinty-eyed fellow and give him a good beating for only speaking halfway.

As if sensing his "killing intent," Xiao Jianren quickly said, "The one who offered Purple Frost Divine Milk as tribute to the Emperor back then was precisely the previous Duke of Cloud-Mid County. If there's anywhere else in the world to find this item, it would most likely be Cloud-Mid County."